"I became tired of Novak Djokovic, he became tired of me": Goran Ivanisevic lays bare his split and how Wimbledon loss to Carlos Alcaraz "hit hard"

Goran Ivanisevic shed light on his split with Novak Djokovic. He also touched upon the Serb’s Wimbledon loss to Carlos Alcaraz and the decline thereafter.

On March 27, Djokovic announced ending his nearly five-year-long partnership with coach Ivanisevic. He fondly reflected on their successful collaboration and his off-court bond with the Croat.

Although the Serb assured that the split was amicable, speculation was rife over what led to the abrupt decision mid-season. About his “intense five years” with the 24-time Grand Slam champion, Ivanisevic said:

"I mean, there isn’t really a “real” reason (for the split). One reason is indeed a sense of saturation/fatigue, this really was a difficult and intense five years," he told Sport Klub as per Tennis Majors.

The 2001 Wimbledon champion recounted the challenges they faced during their time together, including Djokovic’s 2022 Australian Open deportation and North American ban due his vaccination status.

"People forget that period during the coronavirus. They forget that he was at one moment labelled as the greatest villain on the planet because of his vaccination status," he noted. "I mean, we were always in some sort of limbo."

Ivanisevic said that the subsequent “material fatigue” contributed to their decision.

"So yes, we reached a certain level of saturation, as I like to say: 'material fatigue,'" the Croat said. "Basically I became tired of him, he became tired of me; in any case I didn’t feel like I could help him anymore."

Diving deeper into their partnership decline, Goran Ivanisevic said that he started feeling “the end was near” during the 2023 North American swing, right after Novak Djokovic’s Wimbledon final defeat to Carlos Alcaraz, where he was the four-time defending champion.

"I first noticed the feeling, if I’m being completely honest, last year in America. I won’t say as far back as Wimbledon, but that Wimbledon, of course the player is always most affected, but as a coach that loss really hit hard," he said.

"Of course, all congratulations to Alcaraz, at the end of the day. He was the better player, but one or two points here and there, it could have easily turned out different, I won’t go into it now," he added.

Novak Djokovic scripted a tremendous run in the United States, winning the Cincinnati Masters final against Alcaraz, and clinching his fourth US Open title. Ivanisevic, though, felt that their relationship hit a wall.

"An incredible run there – that finals match against Alcaraz in Cincinnati, winning the US Open; however, that’s when I really began to feel that the end was near," he said.

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Goran Ivanisevic on his split with Novak Djokovic: "Maybe in hindsight it should have been at end of last year"

Goran Ivanisevic (left) pictured with Novak Djokovic at the 2024 United Cup

While speaking about the mid-season split, Goran Ivanisevic indicated that he was certain about parting ways with Novak Djokovic since the tail end of 2023.

"It was only a question of whether that would be at the end of the year, or at some point in this year (2024)," he said in the aforementioned interview.

"Maybe in hindsight you could say it should have been at the end of last year but after the US Open, I had that operation on my knee, I wasn’t there for Paris Bercy, Turin came after that," he added.

The Croat touched upon his eventual conversation with Djokovic during the recent Sunshine Double.

"In America when I spoke to Novak he said something good – there is no right or wrong moment, there is only that moment when it happens, when two people agree it is time," he said.

Novak Djokovic is yet to win a title in 2024, having fallen short at the Australian Open and the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells. He kicks off his claycourt campaign at the Monte-Carlo Masters (April 7-13).

Since parting ways with Ivanisevic, he has been accompanied by Serbian player Nenad Zimonjic.